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Olympic gold medalist Misty May-Treanor ruptured her Achilles tendon in rehearsals Friday and has been forced to drop out of “Dancing with the Stars.”

While practicing her jive routine, Misty "heard a pop. It felt like I got hit with a baseball bat."

Misty's diagnosis was revealed at the end of Monday's performance show, where the beach volleyball pro hobbled on stage in a cast and on crutches, and said she was scheduled Tuesday for surgery.

The injury shouldn't affect her pro volleyball career. "I'm going to come back even stronger," says Misty, who was already planning to take off some time next year to spend with her husband, Florida Marlins catcher Matt Treanor.

Along with her dance partner Maksim Chmerkovskiy, Misty gave solid performances in the first two weeks of competition and was considered a strong contender. Misty said she'll be cheering from the sidelines now and apologized to all the female fans for pulling hunky Maks off the dance floor so soon.

Maks, for his part, joked he was more emotional about the season-ending injury than Misty was: "Misty gave me her all and I'm very proud of her."

While there have been injuries on the show before, this season's cast is looking particularly cursed.

Susan Lucci danced Monday night with a bandaged ankle. Derek Hough, who suffered a neck injury last season, reportedly blacked out after hitting his head in a fall during practice over the weekend. Comedian Jeffrey Ross got a scratched cornea while rehearsing the first week, and pro dancer Karina Smirnoff sprained her ankle. And during the time she was training for the show, Kim Kardashian was also taken to the ER for slicing her toe on a broken mirror.

Click here to comment: Are you disappointed Misty had to hang up her dancing shoes? Would you like to see one of the eliminated dancers return in her place?

Message Edited by Tracy_Phillips on 10-07-2008 10:38 AM